UPDATE: This post was updated on March 10, 2025 to include a video and nutrition information.
Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bread is a great way to kick off your Fall baking. This recipe does not include any mix-ins in the bread (no chocolate chunks, raisins, nuts, etc.), it has the perfect amount of pumpkin flavor, and is topped with a vanilla glaze. It's a light and flavor-packed dessert or sweet afternoon snack!
If you're looking for other pumpkin recipes, check out this Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Bread, these Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls, and these Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bagels.
If you're looking for other sourdough discard recipes, check out this Sourdough Discard Garlic Pull Apart Bread, Sourdough Discard Cornbread, and this Sourdough Discard Zucchini Bread.
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Why you'll love this recipe
- This easy recipe takes just 15 minutes to pull together the batter; most of the time is spent baking! And of course, there is no rise time!
- Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bread has a great fall flavor and the glaze adds just enough extra sweetness without being over-the-top.
- This recipe is a great way to use some of your sourdough discard!
- You can freeze Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bread to enjoy later.
- You can easily modify this recipe to include your favorite add-ins, such as chocolate chips, nuts, raisins, and more.
Ingredients
As long as you have pumpkin purée and sourdough discard, you are well on your way to making this recipe!
- All-purpose flour: Using all-purpose flour gives you a soft, fluffy bread. If you were to use bread flour, your bread would be more crusty.
- Spices: You'll need ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves to give this pumpkin bread a quintessential fall flavor.
- Pumpkin purée: You can use store-bought (I like to use Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin) or homemade pumpkin purée.
- Sourdough discard: The sourdough discard should be unfed and at room temperature for this recipe. This recipe is designed to be made with discard from a sourdough starter with a 1:1 ratio (when you feed your starter, it's with 1 part flour and 1 part water). If your starter uses a different ratio, you may need to adjust some of the ingredients in this recipe.
- Powdered sugar: The vanilla glaze is made with a powdered sugar base.
- Non-dairy milk: I use almond milk to make the vanilla glaze, but you can use any unflavored non-dairy (or regular dairy) milk.
See full recipe below for detailed directions.
10/10 recipe! Was looking for a good discard recipe and this is incredible. Will be making this all fall for my friends and family. Thank you for this gem of a recipe!
- Grace
Substitutions & Variations
This is a very adaptable recipe and below are a few easy substitutions and variations you can try.
- Use pumpkin pie spice - If you'd rather use a mix instead of the individual spices, use 1 Tablespoon Pumpkin Pie Spice in place of the ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves.
- Add chocolate chunks - Try my recipe for Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Bread for a version that includes chocolate chunks! You could also add up to ¾ cup of chocolate chunks to the batter as you're mixing.
- Add walnuts: Add ½ cup chopped walnuts to the batter after mixing in the dry ingredients.
- Add raisins: Add ½ cup raisins to the batter after you mix in the dry ingredients.
- Omit the glaze - If you want a less sweet version, you can omit the vanilla glaze.
I have not tested this recipe with other variations, but if you do, let us know how it turns out in the comments! I always love to hear how you're adapting these recipes and use those as ideas for future recipes as well!
How to make Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bread
This is an easy recipe that requires no rise time and comes together in a few simple steps!
In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
In a large bowl, combine the granulated and dark brown sugars, pumpkin purée, sourdough discard, vegetable oil, and egg. Whisk until smooth.
Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined.
Pour the batter into a 9x5-inch loaf pan that has been greased and lined with parchment paper.
Bake until a toothpick inserted in the center of the loaf comes out clean. Let the loaf cool fully before adding the glaze.
In a small bowl, whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and non-dairy milk. Use more milk if you prefer a thinner glaze.
Slowly pour the glaze on top of the cooled loaf.
Slice and enjoy!
Expert Baking Tips
- Make sure there are no lumps in the flour mixture. When mixing the flour and spices together, it's a great time to whisk out any lumps!
- Mix together the wet ingredients thoroughly. Give it a good whisk and the ingredients will all come together smoothly!
- The parchment paper in the baking pan helps make it easier to take the loaf out of the pan. You can skip this if you prefer, but make sure to grease the pan well.
- Let the loaf cool fully before adding the glaze. If you pour the glaze before the loaf has cooled, it will completely melt off of the bread.
- Make the glaze thicker than you think. You can always add more milk to thin the glaze, but it's much harder to add more sugar to thicken it! If it's too thin, it will run right off your loaf!
Equipment
This recipe requires minimal equipment. Use a kitchen scale to measure your sourdough discard (and flour, ideally). You'll need a few mixing bowls as well as a whisk and a spatula. Use a 9x5-inch loaf pan lined with parchment paper to bake the bread. You'll also need a cooling rack for cooling.
kitchen essentials
My Favorite 9x5-Inch Baking Pan
Perfect for quick breads and pull-apart loaves!
Storage
Room Temperature Storage: Store this bread in an airtight container or bag at room temperature for 3-4 days. You can reheat the bread in the microwave for about 30 seconds to make it warm and soft again.
Freezer Storage: Ensure the bread has cooled fully, then store in a freezer-safe container or bag and freeze for up to 3 months. You can freeze individual slices or the full loaf. When you're ready to eat it, let the loaf thaw in the refrigerator overnight. You can reheat individual slices in the microwave for about 30 seconds to make them warm and soft again.
Recipe FAQ
Sourdough discard is what is left over after you feed your sourdough starter. You can either literally discard it (throw it away or compost it), or you can use it in sourdough discard recipes like this one.
If you are new to working with sourdough starter, check out these in-depth guides on how to feed sourdough starter, how to use sourdough discard, and tips for struggling sourdough starter.
Yes! Check out my recipe for Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Chocolate Chunk Bread for a version of this recipe that uses chocolate chunks.
You can use either store-bought or homemade pumpkin purée for this recipe. For storebought, I like to use Libby's 100% Pure Pumpkin.
Yes, if you'd rather use Pumpkin Pie Spice instead of the listed spices, you can. To do so, use 1 Tablespoon of Pumpkin Pie Spice in place of the ground cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger and cloves.
Sourdough Discard Pumpkin Bread
Ingredients
For the Bread
- 1 cup + 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 2 teaspoons ground cinnamon
- ½ teaspoon ground nutmeg
- ½ teaspoon ground ginger
- ¼ teaspoon ground cloves
- 1 teaspoon baking soda
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ½ cup dark brown sugar packed
- 1 cup pumpkin purée room temperature
- 1 egg room temperature
- ⅓ cup vegetable oil
- 200 grams (about ¾ cup) sourdough discard unfed, at room temperature
For the Glaze
- 1 cup powdered sugar
- 1-2 Tablespoons unflavored non-dairy or regular dairy milk
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F. Grease a 9x5-inch loaf pan and line with parchment paper.
- In a medium bowl, whisk together flour, cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, cloves, baking soda, and salt. Set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the granulated and brown sugars, pumpkin purée, sourdough discard, vegetable oil, and egg. Whisk until smooth.
- Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and stir until combined.
- Pour the batter into the prepared pan and spread evenly. Bake for 60 minutes, then tent loosely with aluminum foil and bake for an additional 5-10 minutes until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out clean.
- Remove from the oven and let cool for 10 minutes in the pan. Then remove the loaf from the pan (you can lift it up with the parchment paper) and transfer to a cooling rack to cool for at least an hour.
- While the bread cools, make the glaze. Whisk together the powdered sugar, vanilla extract, and milk. Start with 1 Tablespoon and add more milk as needed to reach your desired glaze consistency. Pour the glaze over the loaf to coat, then slice and enjoy!
Carole says
This is my second time making a double batch of this in the past three days!Delicious!
( I did substitute 1Tbsp pumpkin spice for all the spices called for).
Kristen says
Some of the best pumpkin bread I’ve had! My sourdough discard is made using a 1/2 cup flour plus 1/4 cup water ratio. I also am not a fan of vegetable oil, so I substituted an equal amount of applesauce. I think it was sweet enough without the glaze but I’m sure it would be wonderful with it. Cooked at 350 for 60 minutes uncovered and came out perfectly!
Chelsea says
This recipe was amazing. My kiddos all loved it. I did make a cream cheese icing for it instead of the glaze but that is personal preference. I might try and make it as cupcakes/muffins next time.
Kim S from TN says
I tried this today. Delicious!! So easy to prepare. This will be my go to pumpkin bread recipe. I cooked mine in a gas oven which tends to get hotter. I used tented foil at 50 minutes left of the first 60 minutes, then continued baking for 10 more minutes. (Translation: Baked at 350 uncovered for 50 minutes, then covered for 20 minutes) I used light brown sugar (vs dark brown) and it still came out a beautiful rich color. I did not use glaze this time. Maybe next time. Note: I did not use parchment paper for baking. Instead I lightly buttered the loaf pan then lightly coated with flour. The bread easily came out of the pan when finished cooking.
Eva says
This is amazing! Not too much sugar like other discard recipes. We will be keeping this one in the recipe box!
Mandy says
10 out of 10! Perfection. With my oven, toothpick came out clean after the 1 hour mark, so I didn’t have to do the extra time with foil. The batter smelled so good, my entire house smelled heavenly when it baked, and it had a gorgeous rise and phenomenal flavor. So pretty and delicious! The pumpkin purée I used was from ALDIs, and it worked perfectly.
Emily Batemon says
SO good! I wish I could leave a picture of my pumpkin loaf. Jess, I absolutely love your content! You’re my go-to when I need a discard recipe! Thank you so much for all your videos, recipes, and just being awesome in general!
Jessica Vogl says
This is so sweet - thank you so much for sharing!
Grace says
10/10 recipe!!! Was looking for a good discard recipe and this is incredible. Will be making this all fall for my friends and family. Thank you for this gem of a recipe!!
Jessica Vogl says
So glad you loved it! Enjoy the Fall baking!
Jessie says
Absolutely delicious! My kids asked me if I bought it at the bakery.
Will be in my rotation this fall for sure.
Juliette says
Love this recipe! Added walnuts and raisins, and did not do the glaze. Cut thick slices. Doubled easily. Delicious and everyone loved. Note- this recipe is also forgiving. I wasn’t super precise and forgot to set a timer during bake (didn’t tent w tin foil), and it still ended up great. Would make again.
Jenny says
This recipe is so tasty! I made this in my Cuisinart breadmaker, using the 1 lb. loaf and the Quick Bread/Cake setting. My discard uses 1/2 cup of flour to 1/3 cup water, but it seemed to work for this recipe
Maree Robertson says
Oh my Goodness...this recipe is the best! So light and tasty. I could eat it all in one sitting except I'm sharing it tomorrow. I'm so happy with this can't wait to try your other discard recipes.